CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.11-12.5
The Standard
Analyze how the text structures information or ideas into categories or hierarchies, demonstrating understanding of the information or ideas.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Literacy in Science and Technical Subjects 6—12
What This Standard Means
Students need to see how a science or technical text is organized, not just what it says. They should identify categories, subcategories, ranks, steps, systems, or levels, then explain how that structure helps the reader understand the topic.
Mastery looks like a student marking the text, naming the structure, and explaining why certain ideas belong under broader headings or levels. Students often get stuck by summarizing the content only, missing the hierarchy, or confusing a list of facts with organized categories.
Ways to Teach It
- Give students a short technical article and sticky notes, then have them build a category tree showing main ideas, subtopics, and details.
- Ask students to explain why one paragraph, diagram label, or section heading belongs under a larger category in the text.
- Show a mixed list of terms from the reading and have students sort them into the text’s categories in three minutes.
- Use a car manual, medical brochure, or lab safety guide and have students map how the information is grouped for the reader.
Before This Standard
If students are struggling here, check these first.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.11-12.5
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Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.5
Analyze how a text uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.5
Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and to the development of the ideas.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.6-8.5
Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and to an understanding of the topic.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.3
Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).